1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a hose joint with an opening-closing valve.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional hose joint for connecting a hose and a mating part comprises: a first joint member formed on or fixed to the mating part to be connected to the hose; and a second joint member fixed to an end of the hose.
In the conventional hose joint, an opening-closing valve is provided in the first joint member. A fluid path is opened by the action of the opening-closing valve when the hose is connected to the mating part, and the fluid path is closed when the hose is disconnected from the mating part. However, there is a possibility of a failure in which the fluid path is left open. If such is the case, fluid, such as water and the like, supplied from the mating part flows out through the fluid path when the hose is disconnected from the mating part.
By the way, the opening-closing valve of this type is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication, (KOKAI) No. 56281/1983, published Apr. 16, 1983, and illustrated in FIG. 10. In the conventional opening-closing valve, an increased-diameter portion 121 of a valve body 120 is forcibly seated on or separated from a valve seat 101 of a joint fixture 100 by exerting the urging force of a spring means 130 in the axial direction. Whereby the fluid path of the joint fixture 100 is opened and closed.
In the above-mentioned arrangement, it is difficult to achieve a high sealing property when the valve body 120 and a joint component member 140 are made of plastic in order to reduce their costs. Further, the sealing property might be degraded as the increased-diameter portion 121 of the valve body 120 is repeatedly brought into contact with the valve seat 101. In addition, in the above-mentioned arrangement, it is hard to recover the sealing property until the joint component member 104 is replaced with a new one.